“…as thy days, so shall thy strength be. “ Deuteronomy 33:25

“Ask ye of the Lord…for the idols have spoken vanity, and the diviners have seen a lie, and have told false dreams; they comfort in vain“– Zechariah 10:1-2

There are a thousand different places and people and pleasures that promise comfort and healing and satisfaction…but their comfort is vain, their promises are empty. Cosmetics are not the fountain of youth they claim to be, cars do not satisfy the cavernous need for pleasure that people have, and college will not fill the need for knowledge that every one of us feels. They comfort in vain.

Many religious leaders or philosophical seers or academic icons pretend to understand the needs of mankind and claim to have found the answers to life’s big questions. But they have seen a lie. They are just as blind in their own musings and speculations as those whom they persuade to follow them.

The only true promise, the only full comfort that is to be found in all the universe is found at the feet of Jesus. He is the Way, He is the Truth, in Him is the Life. Everything else and everyone else that makes a pretense of substituting the creator God is telling you a lie, is offering empty promises, is plying a false comfort.

Are you looking today for a soul-filling, need-meeting, pleasure-supplying comfort? The greatest pleasure the world will ever know is the satisfaction of submitting to God, confessing our desperate condition apart from Him, and begging Him to fill us with Himself.

Ask ye of the Lord.You will not be disappointed. His comfort is not in vain.– Baptist Bible Hour

“ But the wisdom that is from above is first pure , then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy. 18 And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace. “James 3:17-18

A story is told of a man named Benjamin Nay. Benjamin would constantly correct others when they were wrong, and because of that, he didn’t have many friends. One day, as Benjamin was driving, a car pulled out in front of him. He accelerated because he had the right of way, and was killed in the ensuing collision.

On his epitaph were written the words,

Here lies the body of Benjamin Nay.
He died defending his right of way.
He was right, dead right as he sped along.
But just as dead as though he were wrong.

Think about it… you come to an intersection in life and you have the right-of-way. Maybe it’s even one of those moments when you can say, “I told you so!” Sure, you can be right. But you might end up being dead right, hurting yourself and others.

As Christians, one thing we need to remember is that being right isn’t the most important thing. Yes, we believe what we say is true, but our command is to “love your neighbor,” not “prove yourself right to your neighbor.” Speak the truth in love and you’ll avoid being dead right!–Jack Graham

In the summer of 1986, two ships collided in the Black Sea off the coast of Russia. Hundreds of passengers died as they were hurled into the icy waters below. News of the disaster was further darkened when an investigation revealed the cause of the accident. It wasn’t a technology problem like radar malfunction—or even thick fog. The cause was human stubbornness. Each captain was aware of the other ship’s presence nearby. Both could have steered clear, but according to news reports, neither captain wanted to give way to the other. Each was too proud to yield first. By the time they came to their senses, it was too late.(Copied)

SPEAK THE TRUTH PEACEABLY AND YOU’LL FOSTER AN ATMOSPHERE OF UNITY AND LOVE.

“Only acknowledge thine iniquity….” – Jeremiah 3:13
We all fail at some point and find ourselves in need of forgiveness. Sadly many take the wrong approach. Some believe that they can compensate for their wrong by doing something right, but that never works. You can’t make up for a bad deed by doing a good one. Nor does it help to merely regret your sin and resolve to do better. Forgiveness comes only by the heart felt confession of sin. James Smith explained it well, he said:

“Will the Lord receive us when we have backslidden from Him, and are desirous of returning to Him? Oh, yes, He invites, He exhorts, He beseeches us to return. Nor does He prescribe any hard conditions, but He says, “ONLY ACKNOWLEDGE THINE INIQUITY.”

He is so ready to forgive, so infinitely gracious in His nature , that if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Have we wandered? Have we left our first love? Let us go and return to our first husband, for then it was better with us than now. His bowels yearn over us, His arms are open to receive us, and He waits to fall upon our neck and kiss us.

Let us go to His throne, and there confess our sins, crave His pardon, sigh for the enjoyment of His love, and He will restore unto us the joys of His salvation, and establish us with His free Spirit. Let us daily confess our iniquities unto the Lord, and He will pardon our numerous sins. In His favour is life. In His frown is distress and woe. He delighteth in mercy. He will receive, pardon us, and bless like a God. His mercy endureth for ever.”

“This glorious news dispels my fears,
Makes glad my heart, wipes off my tears,
Displays the riches of His grace,
Inflames my love, and claims my praise,
A pardon’d sinner lives to prove
The height and depth of Jesus’s love.”

‘ Who is among you that feareth the LORD, that obeyeth the voice of his servant, that walketh in darkness, and hath no light? let him trust in the name of the LORD, and stay upon his God.‘–Isa. 50:10

What shall the believer do in times of darkness — the darkness of perplexity and confusion, not of heart but of mind? Times of darkness come to the faithful and believing disciple who is walking obediently in the will of God; seasons when he does not know what to do, nor which way to turn. The sky is overcast with clouds. The clear light of Heaven does not shine upon his pathway. One feels as if he were groping his way in darkness.

Beloved, is this you? What shall the believer do in times of darkness? Listen! “Let him trust in the name of the Lord, and stay upon his God.” The first thing to do is do nothing. This is hard for poor human nature to do. In the West there is a saying that runs thus, “When you’re rattled, don’t rush”; in other words, “When you don’t know what to do, don’t do it.” When you run into a spiritual fog bank, don’t tear ahead; slow down the machinery of your life. If necessary, anchor your bark or let it swing at its moorings.

We are to simply trust God. While we trust, God can work. Worry prevents Him from doing anything for us. If our minds are distracted and our hearts distressed; if the darkness that overshadows us strikes terror to us; if we run hither and yon in a vain effort to find some way of escape out of a dark place of trial, where Divine providence has put us, the Lord can do nothing for us.

The peace of God must quiet our minds and rest our hearts. We must put our hand in the hand of God like a little child, and let Him lead us out into the bright sunshine of His love. He knows the way out of the woods. Let us climb up into His arms, and trust Him to take us out by the shortest and surest road.
–Dr. Pardington

Remember we are never without a pilot when we know not how to steer.

“Hold on, my heart, in thy believing–
The steadfast only wins the crown;
He who, when stormy winds are heaving,
Parts with its anchor, shall go down;  — Streams in the Desert